Remarkable Content with Ian Faison

If your marketing team keeps talking in circles about what to do next with your B2B marketing initiatives, then we have an idea for you. Stop talking in circles and start telling stories in circles. That’s right – circles. Stick with us here. Hollywood has a tried-and-true method for hooking your audience from the first frame: circular storytelling. If you can leverage this technique effectively, your marketing content can stand out from the crowd – no matter if it’s a case study, a white paper, or a social video.In this episode, we break down the use of circular storytelling in Slumdog Millionaire and discuss how to apply this technique to your B2B marketing.About Slumdog MillionaireSlumdog Millionaire is a 2008 British drama directed by Danny Boyle, co-directed by Loveleen Tandan, and starring Dev Patel and Freida Pinto. Simon Beaufoy wrote the screenplay, which is based on Vikas Swarup’s novel, Q & A. The story follows orphan Jamal Malik, who is selected to be a contestant on the Indian version of Who Wants to be a Millionaire – only to be accused of cheating when he’s one question away from winning the grand prize of 20M Rupees. The movie has won numerous awards, including Academy Award for Best Picture, Music, Writing, Directing, and Sound Mixing (2009) and many, many others.What’s Circular Storytelling?Circular storytelling is a mechanism in which the story literally ends where it began – with the same exact scene. This device hooks the audience at a point of high tension and personal crisis for the main character. Then, the movie flashes back to the opening of the narrative.Slumdog Millionaire opens with Jamal Malik being interrogated and tortured after being accused of cheating on the game show. Through the use of flashbacks, we discover exactly how he knew the answers to each question.What B2B Companies Can Learn From Slumdog Millionaire: Start your customer journey at the end. Document customer stories from the very beginning. By doing this, you can show prospective customers real results you’ve achieved with current ones, and how you could benefit their business. Give them customer success stories, so that they can envision their future as your customer. In Slumdog Millionaire, we know that Jamal will get to the penultimate question on Who Wants to be a Millionaire – because that’s where the story begins. By spelling out the many benefits your company has to offer, you are providing your new customers proof that your organization creates results.Hook ad viewers with a high-intensity intro. Bring them in the middle of the action to grab their attention. For example, you can highlight a common pain point your business can solve – and then use circular storytelling. Slumdog Millionaire starts with Jamal being brutally interrogated on how he knew the game show answers. From this moment, the central mystery of the film is established: if Jamal did not cheat, then how did he know all the answers? Similarly, highlighting a pain point Just like viewers wondered how a slumdog could know the answers, you’ll have them wondering how you can solve all their pain points for them.Key Quotes*”That's always a plus point in any movie, TV show, story or ad that you're reading or watching. If you're thrown right in the middle of it, chances are you’re going to be engaged from the start. - Anagha Das*”Everything has to start on a bang. And whether that takes you back to where you started or whether it's more just a great hook, jumping in on a bang is just something that works. If you don't have [a hook,] you're hard pressed to actually keep people along for the ride.” - Dane Eckerle*”I've seen this in case studies where they have the results at the beginning. And then it unfolds as to how they got those results. There is a huge opportunity to do this kind of storytelling in B2B marketing.” - Colin Stamps*”You should be doing circular storytelling with your case studies, with your customer stories, with your demos, with your prospect journey.” - Ian FaisonTime Stamps[3:19] Tell me more about Slumdog Millionaire[7:05] What is circular storytelling?[10:13] Are there any drawbacks to using circular storytelling?[11:46] How do you apply mystery to your marketing campaign?[16:31] What are examples of circular storytelling in B2B?[18:30] How can you apply this to your B2B marketing? [22:12] Other examples in B2C marketingLinksWatch Slumdog MillionaireSee how Mr. Beast hooks viewersLook at how Gary Vee uses flashbacks on his predictionsCheck out how we’ve used circular storytelling ourselves in The Hacker Chronicles podcastAbout Remarkable!Remarkable! is created by the team at Caspian Studios, the premier B2B Podcast-as-a-Service company. Caspian creates both non-fiction and fiction series for B2B companies. If you want a fiction series check out our new offering - The Business Thriller - Hollywood style storytelling for B2B. Learn more at CaspianStudios.com. In today’s episode, you heard from Ian Faison (CEO of Caspian Studios), Dane Eckerle (Head of Development), Colin Stamps (Podcast Launch Manager), Anagha Das (B2B Content Marketing Manager), and Meredith O’Neil (Senior Producer). Remarkable was produced this week by Meredith O’Neil, mixed by Scott Goodrich, and our theme song is “Solomon” by FALAK. Create something remarkable. Rise above the noise.

Do you think of your customers as simple consumers of your brand? If so, you’re missing out on the opportunity to turn them into diehard brand ambassadors. The key to inspiring impassioned brand loyalty is simple: engage your customers more deeply. Get them talking about your brand. Get them asking questions. And what better way to get your customers engaged than to instill a little mystery in your content?In this episode, we’re looking at the award-winning hit series Only Murders in the Building for lessons on incorporating some mystery into your marketing. We’ll show you how to use interactive marketing, engage your audience’s critical thinking skills, and get people talking about your brand.About Only Murders in the BuildingOnly Murders in the Building is a mystery-comedy series released in 2021. Created by Steve Martin and John Hoffman, the show is about three residents who live in a luxury apartment building in New York City. The trio becomes unlikely friends after they team up to solve the mystery around the death of one of their neighbors – and start a podcast to document it. The award-winning series stars Steve Martin, Martin Short and Selena Gomez. Only Murders in the Building is the most watched comedy premiere on Hulu to date, ranked in Nielsen’s top 10 for weeks following its release, and the first season is rated 100% on Rotten Tomatoes. If you're looking to add a little mystery in your marketing, there's no better example to follow.What B2B Companies Can Learn From Only Murders in the Building: Create an interactive experience for customers. Offer them access points across different platforms or mediums to engage with your brand. Only Murders in the Building gives viewers several opportunities to become detectives themselves. The Emmy award-winning series hid clues relating back to the series across multiple platforms — including at an in-person pop-up event. To promote the show, Hulu also created “ambient rooms,” or video scenescapes of each character’s apartment where viewers could spend time looking for clues to the murder mystery. Clues were hidden in the music, ambient noise, fleeting images, or were even items within the room! It’s this level of audience engagement, suspense, and storytelling that led to the show’s incredible success. Don’t reinvent the wheel…entirely. Martin Short and Steve Martin are a well-known comedy duo and have an amazing on-screen chemistry. Only Murders in the Building took their existing relationship and created something entirely new with it. The addition of pop icon Selena Gomez to the cast as the show’s final detective adds to the promise that viewers will be watching something new. If you’ve created ads, or marketing campaigns that have been successful in the past, take elements of what’s worked well and spin them to create something new. No need to completely reinvent what has already resonated with your audience! Intrigue your audience with mystery. Engage your audience’s critical thinking skills by leaving room to the imagination. Only Murders in the Building builds layers of intrigue with the mysterious death of Tim Kono. But as the show goes on, the mysteries only deepen, and the series slowly reveals that each of the three main characters have dark secrets of their own. In your B2B marketing, create storylines that are playful, suspenseful, and leave some room for your audience to fill in the gaps themselves. Everyone loves a good challenge and piecing together clues to get to the bigger picture.Key Quotes*”Fans are really into mysteries and theories. They like little surprises that involve them and make people feel like they can be a part of the show, a part of solving these mysteries.” - Anagha Das*”Having the show turn into like a bit of a puzzle just creates for a more activating, interactive experience where you're not just sitting there passively consuming content. You actually have to turn your brain on and activate, becoming essentially a part of the show. Your own detective.” - Dane Eckerle*”Every company is presenting some kind of solution that's solving a problem. I wonder if there's some opportunity to make some content around solving that problem, in making that into some kind of mystery.” - Colin Stamps*”One huge benefit and advantage of utilizing mystery is just getting people to discuss things and have a conversation, to talk about what they're seeing or what they're feeling.” - Dane EckerleTime Stamps[1:23] Tell me more about Only Murders in the Building[5:26] Why should you use mystery in your marketing?[8:05] How do you get deeper audience engagement?[11:46] How do you apply mystery to your marketing campaign?[17:32] What other companies have used mystery in their marketing?[21:04] What's the key to a great mystery? [23:01] How can comedy and mystery be used together for greater impact?LinksWatch Only Murders in the BuildingSee how Dove used a sense of mystery in their Real Beauty campaignAbout Remarkable!Remarkable! is created by the team at Caspian Studios, the premier B2B Podcast-as-a-Service company. Caspian creates both non-fiction and fiction series for B2B companies. If you want a fiction series check out our new offering - The Business Thriller - Hollywood style storytelling for B2B. Learn more at CaspianStudios.com. In today’s episode, you heard from Ian Faison (CEO of Caspian Studios), Dane Eckerle (Head of Development), Colin Stamps (Podcast Launch Manager), Anagha Das (B2B Content Marketing Manager), and Meredith O’Neil (Senior Producer). Remarkable was produced this week by Meredith O’Neil, mixed by Scott Goodrich, and our theme song is “Solomon” by FALAK. Create something remarkable. Rise above the noise.

[Cue Latin jazz music] It is the content that sells itself. It ranks #1 – no matter what you Google. It is the most interesting B2B marketing content in the world. And it’s yours.Or at least it could be, after listening to this episode. Because we’re showing you branding tricks from the Dos Equis Most Interesting Man in the World campaign.In this episode, we break down the slogan that helped triple sales for Dos Equis. According to PRNewswire, about fifty percent of customers rely on your slogan when considering doing business with you. Few things are more important for B2B marketing, so we’re here to help you ensure your slogan is as amazing as your product is.Why Dos Equis?The brand’s slogan was a key part of the Most Interesting Man in the World campaign that nearly tripled business for Dos Equis. During the campaign, the number of cases of Dos Equis shipped increased by nearly 35%, and Heineken estimated that around 25% of its growth in the future would come from the Dos Equis brand. The ad also became a part of the cultural zeitgeist, inspiring countless memes, spoofs, and Halloween costumes. So the Most Interesting Man in the World campaign has paid off for Dos Equis. Could a similarly bold campaign pay off for your B2B marketing?About Dos EquisDos Equis is a Mexican lager-style beer made by the Cuauhtémoc Moctezuma Brewery, based in Monterrey, Mexico. The brewery was founded by German immigrant Wilhelm Hasse in 1890 and  is currently owned by Heineken. The same brewery also produces Tecate and Sol. The Most Interesting Man in the World ads were created by Karl Lieberman and Brandon Henderson for an agency called EuroRSCG, New York. They aired in the U.S. from 2007 to 2015. Jonathan Goldsmith played the titular character, and the spots were narrated by William Lyman. The campaign features the Most Interesting Man in the World, Hemingway-esque character whose worldly larger-than-life exploits include bench-pressing women, sewing his own stitches, and swan diving from cliffs. The Most Interesting Man would end the commercials by saying the brand’s two-part slogan: “Because of the campaign, the two-part slogan, “I don’t always drink beer, but when I do I prefer Dos Equis,” and “Stay thirsty, my friends,” the Dos Equis brand decidedly set itself apart. It wasn’t just for the leisurely beach-going dude – it was for the dudes who aspired to be something more…interesting.What B2B Companies Can Learn From Dos Equis:Your slogan should speak to your customer’s aspirations. Do consumer research to get to know your customers. Whether it’s your current or target customers, find out what motivates them. Is it wealth? A desire to belong? Getting a thrill? The team behind the Dos Equis slogan got wind that their male customers wanted to feel like they were more sophisticated. Working from this, they devised The Most Interesting Man in the World campaign.Would I wear the t-shirt? This is self-explanatory. But let's dig deeper into what that means. If someone wants to wear your brand's T-shirt, then they also feel an emotional investment in your brand. So remember, a catchy slogan isn't enough. You've also got to figure out how to create brand ambassadors through your campaigns.Make it a CTA. Call your customers to action with your slogan. Many of the greats do this: Nike tells its customers to “just do it," Subway challenges theirs to “eat fresh,” and Toyota extends an invitation by simply saying, “Let’s go places.” These CTA’s are incredibly simple, and that’s also why audiences respond to them. An effective CTA gets potential customers’ attention and deepens engagement with current customers. Ultimately, it guides them to your marketing funnel and leads them to conversion.Key Quotes*”The slogan is, ‘Stay thirsty, my friends.’ And like that's a key differentiator, right? Is like the aspirational part of your slogan, which is, you want your community or your fans or whatever, or the people who purchase your product, uh, to do X, Y, and Z, to live a great life, to explore, to, you know, innovate, to do whatever it is that you want them to do. Like that is aspirational. Talking about your company is very different. And like, this is what I call the wear the t-shirt moment is like, would you wear a t-shirt that says, I prefer Dos Equis?” - Ian Faison*”When you talk about creating an iconic character to deliver the slogan and the message, it's like people dress up like this guy for Halloween, the actor, the actor slash in in character was invited to the White House to sit with Obama. I mean, that's insane.” - Dane Eckerle*”Here always has to be something that you're telling your audience to go look at, to go read, to go watch, to go like follow up on or talk to someone. And I feel like this is probably the most like natural, like funny, relatable cTA that's been part of a brand's slogan, like, just stay thirsty, my friends like go out like, like Ian said, like go out, like have adventures, like do all these cool things.” - Anagha DasTime Stamps[2:51] Tell me more about Dos Equis[5:30] How successful was the campaign?[6:56] How did Dos Equis differentiate their brand with the slogan?[14:48] What makes a great slogan?[16:39] How could a good slogan affect your bottom line?[19:48] Why should you make your slogan a CTA? [27:18] How do you apply the takeaways to B2B Marketing?LinksGet nostalgic! Watch the Most Interesting Man in the World adsLearn more about Dos EquisTake a look at Liquid Death’s Not a Water Boy campaignOther slogan ideas: Coca Cola “Open Happiness”Apple “Think Different”Slack “Where Work Happens”About Remarkable!Remarkable! is created by the team at Caspian Studios, the premier B2B Podcast-as-a-Service company. Caspian creates both non-fiction and fiction series for B2B companies. If you want a fiction series check out our new offering - The Business Thriller - Hollywood style storytelling for B2B. Learn more at CaspianStudios.com. In today’s episode, you heard from Ian Faison (CEO of Caspian Studios), Dane Eckerle (Head of Development), Colin Stamps (Podcast Launch Manager), Anagha Das (B2B Content Marketing Manager), and Meredith O’Neil (Senior Producer). Remarkable was produced this week by Meredith O’Neil, mixed by Scott Goodrich, and our theme song is “Solomon” by FALAK. Create something remarkable. Rise above the noise.

If you want to make a big impact in a 15-second ad, there’s one trick of the trade that instantly gets an emotional response: place your ad in a relatable setting.  It could be the DMV, an airport, or a drive through —what matters is that it’s a place your audience has been to. They know what it’s like getting a bad driver’s license photo, or struggling to find an outlet to charge your phone while you wait for a connecting flight. By putting your story in a familiar setting, you don’t need to do very much explaining – and you can capitalize on those precious seconds to highlight your message. This week, we’re talking about Mean Girls. Mean Girls is a perfect example of what it means to have a relevant, reminiscent setting. In this episode of REMARKABLE, we talk about how to do the same in your B2B marketing.Why Mean Girls?Mean Girls is a modern classic that introduced the word "fetch" into our vocabulary. But we picked it for this week's episode because it's an excellent example of a film taking a common setting and building off it. You know what setting we're talking about: high school. The movie's production design evokes the all-too-familiar feel of the American high school. But it's not just that; it's also the scenes in the movie as well. We’re talking about high school — the physical place as well as the experience. Mean Girls perfectly captures both, so you watch the movie and go, “I’ve been there. I know what that’s like.” The high school feels familiar because it’s pretty generic. Everything from the hallways and lockers to the cafeteria and classrooms in the movie look like ones in real high schools across the U.S. But it’s more than that — it’s the experience of going to a new school, trying to make friends, having crushes, getting bullied…there’s something for everyone.Did you know that Mean Girls is based on a self-help book? That’s right, Tina Fey wrote the screenplay after reading Queen Bees & Wannabes: Helping Your Daughter Survive Cliques, Gossip, Boyfriends & Other Realities of Adolescence by Rosalind Wiseman. The book was written for parents who wanted to help their teen daughters better navigate the social complexities at school. Fey took key components of the high school experience from the book, along with unforgettable characters and a juicy plot, and Mean Girls was born. Mean Girls became a state-of-the-art classic because of how Tina Fey elevated the high school genre. With her cutting sense of humor and subversive voice, she made Mean Girls one of the most quotable and enduring of its kind.A Quick Mean Girls Refresher Mean Girls tells the story of Cady Heron, who gets her first taste of public high school after her scientist parents move from Africa to the Chicago suburbs. Outcasts Janis and Damien show Cady the ropes, but Cady winds up going her own way. Despite her friends’ warnings, she is drawn into the cool girl clique, “The Plastics,” led by Regina George. Cady finds out how cutthroat The Plastics truly are after making the mistake of falling for Regina’s ex. So Cady, Janis and Damien plot to bring on Regina’s downfall.What B2B Companies Can Learn From Mean Girls: Set the stage. We know it’s important to choose a memorable setting, but don’t forget to give it some history. On Cady’s first day in class, she was told not to sit in a certain seat because Kristin Hadley’s boyfriend sits there. Do we know who Kristin Hadley is? No. But we’ve all walked into a situation where we accidentally took someone’s seat. B2B companies can take common themes and everyday elements to create a familiar setting for their audience.Use compelling visuals. Use imagery that's authentic and tells your brand’s story. Mean Girls is set in a real school that’s still functioning today. The interior shots of the high school in Mean Girls were filmed at Montclair High School in Montclair, New Jersey. There’s a reason why the style of the halls, the lockers, the cafeteria and classrooms look like the ones at your school. MHS was built in 1959, during the baby boom that followed World War II. In order to efficiently meet the needs of a growing population, school architecture designs were standardized, and the components pre-fabricated. That’s why the school in Mean Girls looks so real to all of us – and don’t forget that it’s also a real, actual school! That’s why we identify so much with the film, even if it takes place in a heightened, comedic world. Bottom line: in your B2B marketing campaigns, pull visuals that will have an emotional impact on your audience.Make it entertaining. Here we go, talking about edu-tainment again! Don’t forget to add some humor to your marketing. It’s an understatement to say that Mean Girls is a prime example of this – after all, Tina Fey wrote the screenplay. But she uses comedy to explore the bullying that happens among teen girls – while also keeping the audience engaged through tight plotting, intelligent pacing, and well-drawn characters. Do the same with your B2B work. Create ads that will immediately captivate your audience and leave them wanting more. Entertaining tidbits can be weaved into assets like LI ads, social posts, video campaigns, and blog posts. Remember, the shorter the asset (think short social posts or 30 second video ads), the higher the chances of engagement and viewership are.Key Quotes*”If you only have 15 or 30 seconds in the age of TikTok to grab somebody, if you're leaning into something that people know, to establish a setting, a time, a place, then you free up your runway to talk about the things that you really want to get across because those things are already built in.” - Dane Eckerle*”When it comes to setting, it's about being really relatable but also super relevant to your audience. When B2B marketers split up their target audience into personas, for example, know that they're people first, and more than just personas. They’re professionals who want to make better impressions and build stronger relationships. You have to be relatable to sell to them as a marketer, but also show your true self and be authentic. And I think that comes with knowing exactly the groups that they’re in and what they care about.“ - Anagha DasTime Stamps[1:13] What’s Mean Girls about?[3:41] What does it mean to be relatable?[7:10] Mean Girls’ box office success[8:54] Why is the high school setting important in Mean Girls?[12:05] Is there a psychological reason consumers gravitate towards relatable content? [14:25] What are our marketing takeaways from Mean Girls?[18:48] How do you apply the takeaways to B2B Marketing?LinksWatch Mean GirlsCheck out #LifeinsideDropBoxTake a look at how HubSpot highlights employeesAnd then there’s Corporate BroVidyard is doing cool stuff with videos tooAbout the ShowRemarkable! is created by the team at Caspian Studios, the premier B2B Podcast-as-a-Service company. Caspian creates both non-fiction and fiction series for B2B companies. If you want a fiction series check out our new offering - The Business Thriller - Hollywood style storytelling for B2B. Learn more at CaspianStudios.com. In today’s episode, you heard from Ian Faison (CEO of Caspian Studios), Dane Eckerle (Head of Development), Colin Stamps (Podcast Launch Manager), Anagha Das (B2B Content Marketing Manager), and Meredith O’Neil (Senior Producer). Remarkable was produced this week by Meredith O’Neil, mixed by Scott Goodrich, and our theme song is “Solomon” by FALAK. Create something remarkable. Rise above the noise.

In the B2B world, we think about growing our customer base. But one thing B2B marketers often overlook is how to transform your customer base into a community. You may be wondering, isn’t a customer base and a community the same thing? Not exactly. A community is your customer base taken to the next level, with a lot more engagement. It’s a network of relationships based on passion, instead of transactions. And it’s this passion that brings like-minded people together to form a dedicated community that outlasts and outperforms any regular customer base. In 2017, the U.S. Men’s National Soccer Team failed to qualify for the World Cup for the first time since 1986. It was this devastating low point that birthed a community that was so determined to see the underdog make a big comeback. Enter the Scuffed podcast.Scuffed was started by Adam Belz and Greg Velasquez out of pure love for American soccer. And in the last five years, they’ve created, grown, and nutured a robust community of listeners who are engaged across a variety of platforms.In this episode of REMARKABLE, we explore the nuances of community-building, and how you can use it in your B2B marketing.Why the Scuffed Podcast?You’re probably wondering why we picked the Scuffed podcast for this episode. Welp, for one, our CEO, Ian Faison, is a member of the community himself. He doesn’t just listen to their podcast; he also subscribes to their Patreon and hangs out on their Discord!. Ian was drawn to The Scuffed podcast team’s genuine love for American soccer. These guys are INTO IT. And that authentic passion is like a community-building magnet.Scuffed brings together a community of American soccer lovers and lets them choose their own adventure when it comes to accessing content.. They have their weekly podcast episodes, with over 300 episodes that are currently publicly available. Then, they have an additional layer of content for those who want to support the show by paying a little every month. Patrons gain access to exclusive episodes along with Scuffed’s exclusive Discord channels where subscribers chat about recent games, favorite players, stats, share memes, etc. The members of the Scuffed podcast team (Adam, Greg, Vince, Jordan, and Watke) are all actively engaged on Scuffed’s Patreon and Twitter accounts. They frequently interact with followers, chat with them about the show, and even arrange in-person meetups. That right there is a hat trick when it comes to building a powerful community.About ScuffedThe Scuffed Podcast is a weekly show about American soccer with a focus on the U.S. Men’s National Team. On the podcast, hosts Adam Belz and Greg Velasquez recap games, talk strategy, chat about their favorite soccer personalities, and do occasional interviews with players and coaches. Adam and Greg founded Scuffed in 2017 after the USMNT failed to qualify for the World Cup. Since then, they added a Monday Review with Chris Russell and Vince Irvin, a Discord, and a newsletter.What B2B Companies Can Learn From the Scuffed Podcast: Be authentic. We know it sounds cliche, but it’s a cliche for a reason. If you center your business around a product or service you truly believe in, chances are, other people will believe in it too. And a community will be born naturally! The Scuffed guys just love soccer, and they want to see the U.S. Men’s National Team qualify for (and win!) the World Cup. They’ve followed the team for years, analyzing their every move, and can give expert insights about their progress because of it. B2B companies can learn from this by building a brand/product/service that emanates passion and has a common goal audiences can rally behind. Release consistent, timely content. How has Scuffed stayed so relevant for so long? It’s not just that they’re passionate about soccer – it’s also that they’re consistent. By creating a regular and consistent content schedule, they’ve built trust amongst their community. People know when the next episode will drop, when in-person events will happen, and when Adam and team will be responding to replies on Twitter. The Scuffed team also goes the extra mile for their audience and creates reaction episodes for special events, like the release of the World Cup roster. The Scuffed team knows their fans (do you want to bet they’re called Scuffers?) will want to hear about it. So, bottom line: be sure to release relevant, relatable content on a regular cadence, and your audience will steadily grow (and the real fans will be stoked for any bonus content). Interact with your audience. Guess what? Community is a two-way street! So as long as your audience is responding to your social posts, posting in your Slack or Discord channels, or even sending you emails — leaders should be engaging with their clients just as much. It’s this two-way interaction that sets the tone for a community. More times than not, community members (think mega fans of your business) end up creating their own content. User-generated content validates both the work of the contributor, and adds more material to your usual content roster. Scuffed community members often make their own videos and highlight reels that the Scuffed team re-posts on the Scuffed channels, giving credit to their community members. This helps build trust and a stronger relationship with community members. Engaging with your audience across multiple platforms will only help you as you grow your B2B community. Meet your community where they are.  A lot of Scuffed’s success can be attributed to the numerous platforms and channels they offer content to for their community. Whether it’s the weekly podcast, email, newsletter, social media, Discord, videos, and more, Scuffed fans enjoy having options for how to tune in to content. So, give your audience the power to choose how plugged into your B2B community they can be. For example, some people may love interacting with your business every day, via Twitter and Slack channels. Others may prefer to check into the community once or twice every few weeks by reading your newsletter or watching video content. Giving your community the choice on how they plug in allows them to consume your content the way they want.Key Quotes*”When I think of community outside of the context of making a podcast, I think of old kinds of communities. Like rural farming communities or urban communities where people are living together and suffering together, and sacrificing for each other. And so I don't know how to relate that to a Discord server. Like, I don't know what the connection is between those two things, because they're both technically a community. But when you're living online with people, how do you suffer with them or sacrifice for them? Do we even know how to do that yet as humans?” - Adam Belz*“Repeatability is so crucial because you can have a good idea and maybe even execute it once. But if it's not something you can just go back to and be able to do over and over again, it's not something you can offer as a promise to the listener.” - Adam Belz*”We're not very calculated when it comes to building a community or maximizing our reach. We're just kind of doing our thing. We're just some guys making a podcast because they love soccer and they love the national team. And I think the chillness of it was appealing to people.” - Adam BelzTime Stamps[0:55] How to build a community[2:00] Introducing Adam Belz of Scuffed[3:47] What are our takeaways?[8:00] How did Adam start the Scuffed podcast?[13:40] What’s the difference between building a virtual vs. in-person community?[16:48] What assets does the Scuffed podcast have?[19:48] How did Adam grow the Scuffed community?[24:58] How is Scuffed offering different levels of engagement for listeners?[30:20] How do you differentiate yourself from competitors?[33:49] How do you manage negative interactions within the community?[43:37] Why does being authentic attract community engagement?[48:54] What does Scuffed do with user-generated content?LinksListen to the Scuffed PodcastCheck out the Scuffed websiteConnect with Adam on LinkedInFollow Adam on TwitterFollow the U.S. Men’s National Soccer TeamAbout the ShowRemarkable! is created by the team at Caspian Studios, the premier B2B Podcast-as-a-Service company. Caspian creates both non-fiction and fiction series for B2B companies. If you want a fiction series check out our new offering - The Business Thriller - Hollywood style storytelling for B2B. Learn more at CaspianStudios.com. In today’s episode, you heard from Ian Faison (CEO of Caspian Studios), and Adam Belz (Co-Founder and Host of Scuffed). Remarkable was produced this week by Meredith O’Neil, mixed by Scott Goodrich, and our theme song is “Solomon” by FALAK. Create something remarkable. Rise above the noise.

The word “ensemble” might make you think of a group of performers all working in tandem. But what happens when we apply it to B2B marketing? In 2001, an ensemble of all-star actors outdid any other cast…maybe ever.George Clooney, Brad Pitt, Julia Roberts, Matt Damon, Andy Garcia, Don Cheadle, Bernie Mac, Casey Affleck – actors at the top of their game.Each one could draw their own crowd. But together? They’re unstoppable. Add in the sparkling backdrop of the Vegas strip and the tension of a high-stakes heist, and you have yourself a blockbuster. That blockbuster is Ocean’s 11, and it upped the ante for what a star-studded ensemble could be.In this episode of REMARKABLE, we take a look at the power of the ensemble in Ocean’s 11 and how you can use it in your B2B marketing.The house always wins. Unless you bring together a powerful ensemble. And today we’re taking the house with some B2B tips on bringing together an ensemble of high rolling sharks.Why Ocean’s 11?Alright, so we all love Ocean’s 11. But why’d we pick it for this week’s Remarkable episode? Because of the insanely hot cast – and we aren’t just talking about their cheekbones. Ocean’s 11 is packed with the best of the best, including George Clooney, Brad Pitt, Matt Damon, Julia Roberts, Bernie Mac, Eddie Jemison, Casey Affleck, Don Cheadle, Carl Reiner, Elliot Gould, and Andy Garcia. Even Viola Davis makes a cameo – well, sort of. Remember Danny Ocean’s exit interview from the prison scene? Viola Davis voices the officer. Any of those actors featured in a film would sell out opening night at the movie theater. But all of them billed together is unprecedented! Aside from the star-studded cast, the characters they play have huge personalities of their own. The eleven-character ensemble of criminals boasts a myriad of talents, from pick-pocketing to con-artistry to speed racing. In other words, they have all the important skills needed to pull off a heist.A Quick Ocean’s 11 RefresherIn case you’ve been living under a rock for the past few decades…Ocean’s 11 is a heist movie about a string of Las Vegas casino robberies. The OG movie was filmed in 1960 and starred Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin and Sammy Davis, Jr. It was remade in 2001, with a cast just as star-studded as the original. The film was one of the biggest hits of the year, bringing in over $450 million in box office. But it wasn’t just the cast that made the movie such a success. Behind the scenes, the craftsmanship was just as impressive. Ocean’s 11 was directed by Steven Soderbergh, who had just become one of only three directors to be nominated twice for Best Director in the same year (he won the Oscar for directing Traffic and “lost” for directing Erin Brockovich). It’s a classic movie formula: an amazing cast + a director at the top of his game = instant classic.Who’s Who?Danny Ocean: The Mastermind (George Clooney)Rusty Ryan: The Right-Hand Man (Brad Pitt)Tess Ocean: The Love Interest (Julia Roberts)The Malloy Brothers: The Drivers (Casey Affleck & Scott Caan)Livingston Dell: Electronics (Eddie Jemiston)Basher Tarr: Munitions  (Don Cheadle)The Amazing Yen: The Grease Man (Shaobo Qin)Linus Caldwell: The Pickpocket (Matt Damon) Frank Catton: The Casino Employee (Bernie Mac)Reuben Tishkoff: The Bankroll (Elliott Gould)Saul Bloom: The Con Artist (Carl Reiner)Pick Your Teams Carefully Why do we connect so much with the characters in Ocean’s 11? Their backstories and skillsets are both distinct and relatable, a combination that helps us empathize with them. But Danny Ocean has also picked a team that compliments each other perfectly. Each character brings a unique set of skills to the table that no other character can do –  imagine if Linus tried to pull off one of The Amazing Yen’s stunts! The characters each have their special talents, and they work well together. That’s what makes them a great team, and it’s why people who’ve watched this movie across the globe root for them. The cast also has amazing chemistry. While watching Ocean’s 11, we wonder – who in our own friends and family is our Danny Ocean, the smooth-talking romantic? We all know rambunctious brothers like the Malloys – and we all wish we knew Don Cheadle!But we relate to characters in movies all the time. Heck, that’s what makes a great movie! But creating chemistry on screen takes intention, effort, and talent. It’s not just the actors working together – it’s the writing, the directing, the costume design, the editing…all of it comes together to create what we in B2B would call a high-value touch point. And the strength of the connections onscreen is what makes this film  Remarkable.What B2B Companies Can Learn From Ocean’s 11Make characters for the personas you’re marketing to. There’s a team member for everyone among the Ocean’s 11 crew. Whether you like the Malloy brothers because they’re jokesters or you relate to Linus Caldwell because he goes against the grain, there’s a character in here for everyone to latch onto. Plus they all have a robust, shared history, which makes them feel more real. So, how’s this applicable to your B2B marketing? For your next campaign, make characters or personas your customers can identify with. Progressive does a great job creating characters to bring their business to life in their ads. They have Flo, their staple insurance spokeswoman; Dr. Rick, a parental life coach who advises people on buying homes; and other characters who tell Progressive’s story. Salesforce is a B2B company that creates characters for their brand narrative, and they’ve created characters so recognizable that people line up to take photos with life-sized versions of them at Dreamforce! That’s the power of harnessing storytelling in B2B marketing – by creating characters that speak to your audience, you have the opportunity to create powerful brand loyalty.Build the best team. Find people who are specialists in their field to fulfill their role in your project or marketing team. Did you know The Amazing Yen, played by Shaobo Qin, was discovered while performing with the Peking Acrobats? Ocean’s 11 was his first acting role. Crazy, right?! In other words, no stunt double required – he actually pulled off that flip in the vault to avoid setting off any sensors near the floor. This casting is a perfect example of finding the right actor and also finding the right role within the heist team. The bottom line: In your B2B marketing, match each of your team member’s strengths to their role, and you can successfully pull off any project.Create a sense of purpose. Danny Ocean and Rusty Ryan bring together their team around a sole mission: a massive heist. Together, they go over the plan and each of their roles within it. Because there’s a reward for successful completion of the mission (about $13M each), it motivates each of them to do their part. There’s also a major caveat that if any one of them messes up, no one will get paid (and worse). So bring your team together around a clear mission with defined roles for each member of the team. Define a shared set of KPIs with clear expectations and work together to achieve your goals.Key Quotes*”There's a lot of different ways there that B2B companies can pull from A-list talent or just creating an ensemble, by having these different characters tell the story of your brand” - Anagha Das*“There's a cool opportunity [for] a business to make an ad where they have their own characters and there's like a story that they build with each one. B2B companies can do the same concept with their personas and create a character based on each persona. Similar to Ocean’s 11, they can even incorporate some of those cinematic storytelling aspects and play that out among the characters.” - Colin StampsTime Stamps[1:17] What's Ocean's 11 about?[1:55] What's an ensemble?[3:10] How successful was Ocean's 11?[4:31] Technique of the week: The Ensemble[5:59] Why does the technique work when it comes to B2B marketing?[9:17] Why is the ensemble an effective storytelling mechanism? [11:04] Who's who in Ocean's 11?[14:15] How do you use the ensemble in your marketing?[18:45] More examples of using an ensemble in B2B marketingLinksWatch Ocean’s 11Check out the Salesforce charactersTake a look at Duolingo on TikTokMeet Dr. Rick, Flo, and more at Progressive.comAnd here’s the Old Spice guyLook at how State Farm is partnering with athletesAbout the ShowRemarkable! is created by the team at Caspian Studios, the premier B2B Podcast-as-a-Service company. Caspian creates both non-fiction and fiction series for B2B companies. If you want a fiction series check out our new offering - The Business Thriller - Hollywood style storytelling for B2B. Learn more at CaspianStudios.com. In today’s episode, you heard from Ian Faison (CEO of Caspian Studios), Dane Eckerle (Head of Development), Colin Stamps (Podcast Launch Manager), Anagha Das (B2B Content Marketing Manager), and Meredith O’Neil (Senior Producer). Remarkable was produced this week by Meredith O’Neil, mixed by Scott Goodrich, and our theme song is “Solomon” by FALAK. Create something remarkable. Rise above the noise.

What is puffery? How can you use it in your B2B content?In the mid-2000s there was a King of Puffery. He soared into our lives as the SHAM-WOW guy. But his tour-de-force was the SLAP-CHOP. His name was Vince Offer, and he changed infomercials (and quite literally our lives) forever. In the first episode of REMARKABLE, we examine his use of puffery in the SLAP-CHOP commercials and how you can use it in your B2B marketing. Stop having a boring tuna, stop having a boring life! Let's slap those marketing troubles away and chop up some B2B marketing and content morsels for all to enjoy.Key Quote"There’s an opportunity to do this (for B2B companies). It’d be super interesting if I went on LinkedIn and there was a video from a technology company I follow and it was a fun, infomercial style video instead of a boring product demo…Just to engage with the audience in a different way. I think there’s an opportunity for that.” - Colin StampsTime Stamps*[1:38] What’s the Slap Chop?*[3:33] Who is Vince Offer?*[3:50] The magic of infomercials*[4:55] Why Vince Offer’s marketing technique works*[6:23] The use of exaggeration or “puffery” in marketing*[7:07] Remarkable Technique of the Week: Puffery. Why does puffery in marketing work?*[8:37] How to frame the Before / After in your marketing *[10:08] Other marketing examples of puffery in B2B and B2CLinksWatch the Slap Chop InfomercialRead the Fair Trade Commission ActAbout the ShowRemarkable! is created by the team at Caspian Studios, the premier B2B Podcast-as-a-Service company. Caspian creates both non-fiction and fiction series for B2B companies. If you want a fiction series check out our new offering - The Business Thriller - Hollywood style storytelling for B2B. Learn more at CaspianStudios.com. In today’s episode, you heard from Ian Faison (CEO of Caspian Studios), Dane Eckerle (Head of Development), Colin Stamps (Podcast Launch Manager), Anagha Das (B2B Content Marketing Manager), and Meredith O’Neil (Senior Producer). Remarkable was produced this week by Meredith O’Neil, mixed by Scott Goodrich, and our theme song is “Solomon” by FALAK. Create something remarkable. Rise above the noise.

B2B marketers are always looking for inspiration and ideas. On Remarkable, the Caspian Studios team is bringing you B2B content ideas from Hollywood, B2C and beyond. In each episode we will explore elements of storytelling, design, and production, from studios like Pixar, Marvel, Lucas Films and many more. Then we will apply those lessons learned to how you can improve your B2B content. Welcome to Remarkable! Key Quotes“This is a great podcast that you should definitely listen to!” - Ian Faison, CEO, Caspian Studios“You should tell all of your marketing friends to listen to every episode” - Fian Flason, Anonymous“I like all the different speakers, they are so fun and funny. Especially Meredith.” - Meredith O’Neil“Ian, why do we need quotes for this section?” - Meredith O’Neil“Are you making up quotes and recording our conversation?” - Meredith O’NeilKey TakeawaysWell, since the trailer is only one minute and 18 seconds long, the takeaway is LISTEN IN.Don’t swim on a full stomach.Beer before liquor, never been sicker.Podcasts are good for the soul.Episode HighlightsAgain, it's only one minute and 18 seconds so there aren’t a lot of highlights. We had to make up quotes already. Our first episode is Slap-Chop! Remember that? Choppy chopper thing? Crazy guy chopping stuff? Okay just head over and listen to it.About the ShowRemarkable! is created by the team at Caspian Studios, the premier B2B Podcast-as-a-Service company. Caspian creates both non-fiction and fiction series for B2B companies. If you want a fiction series check out our new offering - The Business Thriller - Hollywood style storytelling for B2B. Learn more at CaspianStudios.com. In today’s episode, you heard from Ian Faison (CEO of Caspian Studios), Dane Eckerle (Head of Development), Colin Stamps (Podcast Launch Manager), Anagha Das (B2B Content Marketing Manager), and Meredith O’Neil (Senior Producer). Remarkable was produced this week by Meredith O’Neil, mixed by Scott Goodrich, and our theme song is “Solomon” by FALAK. Create something remarkable. Rise above the noise.